My Roots...

I have always wanted to get pesonlized license plates, but have never found the write saying to layout for everyone to see. On our recent car ride to San Diego, Mike spent time helping me figure out what I wanted it to say. As most of you know, I am an east coast girl at heart, and my New Jersey childhood holds many memories for me.... SO, I knew I wanted something that reflected who I am, and after many trys this is what I finally came up with.... Ready!



Seriously, I did not know how many people loved NJ or were from there... You can't believe how many trys it took to come up with JRSIGAL!

I hope my boys will have as many terrific childhood memories as I have. When I think of NJ my heart gets filled up and a BIG smile is planted on my face.... And, it especially makes me think of my wonderful dad who no longer is with me. Those special memories help me keep him close and I know he would of loved what the license plate said. We were both always silly about things like that... Love you dad!

Happy 10th Anniversary To Us..

I can't believe it has been TEN years since I married my Mikey. In some ways it feels like just yesterday, and then at other times it seems like a lot of life has happened since we walked "up" the aisle together.If you were not at our wedding, you might need some clarification on that....

Usually, Mike is the one making all the plans so this time I decided to be in the drivers seat. I planned two nights away for us, with the little ones that is about our max these days. My mom and Lisa split the duties of watching the J & J boys and we greatly appreciated that. My mom got me two nights at the new Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino... I sent Mikey an evite letting him know when he needed to be ready and what to pack. That was all he knew...

We left on Thursday and arrived at Roy's Restaurant. I had dropped off the homemade anniversary cake from Buttercream Dreams earlier in the day. I wanted to re-create the top tier of our wedding cake, so I had Beth use our wedding color of purple, and she placed flowers all over the cake. It was beautiful, and Mikey was very surprised when his Chocolate Souffle dessert was replaced with a cake for him! We enjoyed a great dinner at Roy's!

Then on Friday we got ready and I surprised Mikey with a Couple's Massage at the fabulous Aji Spa at the Sheraton Wildhorse Pass Hotel. We enjoyed an hour massage together and then relaxed at the pool for the afternoon. Another great day. We ended the day with a terrific dinner at VaBenne and then went to see the movie "Date Night". Honestly, I can't tell you the last movie that we have seen together.

Today, we shopped, spent some more quality tome together and then headed home to our J & J boys... Oh, and did I tell you, I got my Pandora bracelet that I have wanted forever... It is beautiful. Mike has the best eye for jewelry...

Thanks baby for an amazing ten years, can't wait to celebrate another ten!

I'm Getting Excited...

Tomorrow, 4/8/2010, Mike and I will be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. If you know me well, you know I greatly dislike surprises and can't keep them worth anything. But, for some reason, I have been able to keep from Mike just what we will be doing for two whole days together. The fun starts tomorrow night and I can't wait! Stay tuned, I will be sure to share pictures and let you know if he liked it!

Also, please cross your fingers that the kiddos behave for my mom and Lisa. They are each taking them for a night....

Let's Celebrate.... With a Girls Night Out!

Last night I went out to dinner with some girlfriends to celebrate my friend Shanti's birthday. There are six of us that get together once a month for some "girlfriend" time. The hubbies are home with the kiddos for the evening, making dinner (or bringing in pizza), giving baths and putting the little ones to sleep. It is always a fun night, and when the evening is over we are all awaiting the next time we can do it again.

Last nights resturant pick was Firebirds,(located by the Chandler Mall).I have been there many times and the food is always great as well as the service and atmosphere. One of my menu favorites is the Pecan Crusted Trout. Yummo!

Here are a few pics from our birthday celebration. Happy birthday Shanti!

I Told Myself Never...

I remember before I had kids, I would see other kiddos wearing shirts, hats, or other articles of clothes with Cartoon Charaters or Superheros. I told myself that my kids would never wear them, because honestly I just think they are all "cheezy".

Okay, so something happened to me in the last six years, because this picture below says it all... A Spiderman hat and a Superman shirt.... And, I even bought both pieces myself for Jayden....

I guess I just never thought about how darn cute my kiddos might look in these articles of clothing.... I LOVE this kid!

Passover Dinner

On Monday night we celebrated Passover at my mom's house. I always love this time of year, and any Jewish holiday for that matter. I love gathering at the table and remembering years past and where we are today. My mom's cooking is one of the best parts of this holiday, and this year I finally made the Mandel Bread myself. And, it was SO yummy! I usually let my mom do all the cooking for this holiday, but this year I watched closely, and it was very fun sharing the cooking experience with her. I learned from the best!

This year was very special, because we had Tom, a new addition at our Passover Seder. My mom met Tom a few months ago and has been enjoying spending time with him, sharing great home-cooked meals, and most of all enjoying a new relationship that she greatly deserves.

The picture below, I cannot enlarge, but is a very adorable one of my Mom and Tom.... and a few others to share as well. Daddy and Jordy.... How cute is this picture????

Mom and Stef

The Ortega's and The Callison's

Sean and Brittany

Jayden and Joshua

Stefanie and Shanti